A short post on the most underrepresented eye color in fiction and the most common eye color in the world.
Things that are Shades of Brown
Wood (range from light brown to black)
Chocolate (mid to dark brown)
Coffee (pale gold to black)
Afternoon sunlight (gold)
Earth (wet earth = dark brown, red clay = reddish brown, wet sand = light brown)
Topaz gemstone (orange to dark brown)
Leather (mid to dark brown)
Autumn or winter: Brown, an earth tone, is closely associated with dead plants, which are brown and not very romantic. You can link this to the smell of woodsmoke, bark, or new snow; the taste of frost or hot chocolate; the sight of bare branches and southward-flying birds; the touch of warm sweaters or rake handles; the sound of crunching leaves or fire crackling.
Earth: Again, brown is an earth tone. You can link this to petrichor, the smell of flowers, animals, or water; the taste of crisp cold air or freshwater; the sight of fresh soil, stones, bark, or a low-slung, comfortable cabin; the touch of rain, leather, dirt, or fur; the sound of birds calling, rain falling, plants rustling
Alcohol: Most liquor is gold or brown. You can link this to the smell of alcohol and a well-packed bar; the taste of ice, glass, garnish, and alcohol; the sight of a polished bar, a half-empty glass/mug, and the shotgun resting below the bar; the touch of a mild buzz, an arm through yours, or the mild jostling as you find a barstool; and the sound of barroom buzz, a pool table, jazz music, and pouring drinks.
Animals: Many animals - predator and prey - have brown or golden eyes. You can link this to the smell of (wet) fur; the taste of cold wind, blood, or plants; the sight of moving branches, unblinking eyes, feathers shining in the sun, and fur ruffling in the breeze; the touch of the ground beneath your bare feet, branches whipping along beside you, and the weather; and the sounds of panting/breathing, or soft footfalls or wing beats.
Material: Brown is a tactile color, bringing with it the touch of copper or velvet or hemp or satin in addition to the hue. You can link this to the smell of metal, wet fabric, or hemp; the taste of blood (sometimes described as coppery) or champagne at a luxurious event; the sight of a richly decorated bed, a burnished weapon or set of buttons, or a lovely gown; the touch of cold metal, soft velvet, or course fur; and the sounds of rubbing fur, rustling fabric, and chiming metal.
Blackness: This is for all the very dark-eyed people out there who appear not to have irises at all. You can link this to the smell of a cold night or of rock; the taste of regret, lies, or red wine; the sight of raven’s wings, obsidian, flickering shadows, mourners at a funeral, coals, and endless pits; the sensation of being about to fall into a hole, the secret thrill of illicit behavior, nothingness, warmth, or compelling mystery; and the sounds of murmured conversations, rustling feathers, and drowsiness.
Descriptions for Brown Eyes: Other
crystal-thimble: deep and velvety
extremeflamingo: October eyes
zomborgs: golden brown, like the afternoon sun shining through a glass of whiskey
gsaxby: your eyes are like freshly melted chocolate
just-a-writer: the colour of coal moments before the earth turns it into a diamond
rossdittman: tree bark, dark wood, mountain rock, dark leather
tane-p: i love it when brown eyes are compared with the colors of coffee or honey
vikinghans: pebble brown, the haze of bark, a shade of sooty cocoa
cailincasta: my best friend tells me my eyes are like an intense golden brown kaleidoscope. Buttered chocolate with darker rays fanning out around the bottomless pit of an iris, swirled with caramel crescent moons and trapped by a thick, hazy, black limbal ring.
lightlybow: I, personally, like the terms “honey” or “molasses” because it indicates depth and warmth and familiarity
moonjade65: Their eyes were like brown pebbles smoothed slowly by the trickle of a stream.
that-one-fandom-chick: his eyes reminded me of the hot chocolate I would drink as a kid during winter. A deep, rich, chocolate color.
aprincessdoesntimplyfragility: El sol bañaba sus ojos color caoba y los hacía aún más cálidos, del color chocolate con leche y la tierra fresca y fértil (translation: the sun bathes your eyes in chestnut, augmenting the color of chocolate with milk and fresh, fertile land)
musings-of-a-writer: amber or cognac
ultracoal: brown like a June bug
marlynnofmany: he hadn’t seen brown eyes gloe before, but hers did - like morning sunlight on the bark of a redwood tree.
katsumiri: her eyes are too clear to be a real brown, too milky to be a real chocolate
marquis-shax: sunshine through a glass of whiskey
ghostoyevsky: copper-colored
vaulteddoors: she had eyes the colour of a night at the bar: hardwood floors and 4am ale
